There have been many systems proposed for decomposing whole and fragmented tires (hereinafter referred to as "waste tires") in a manner that recovers some of the various components of manufacture such as gas, oil, steel and carbon black. These systems suggest that they can perform those functions in an economical fashion and without damage to the environment. These prior art systems have not proved to be as commercially viable and as effective as the public had hoped. Some of these systems require the tires to be fragmented into workable pieces prior to processing. Other prior art systems provide an autoclave system for melting. The present invention utilizes controlled combustion with vacuum and is designed in a manner so that the heat of combustion can be readily utilized for the co-generation of energy and the recovery of the aforementioned useful components.